Topic: iOS

Days after Apple provided a Web tool to allow ex-iPhone users to deregister their cell phone number from its iMessage service, a California judge has ruled that a class-action lawsuit against Apple for "hijacking" users' ability to receive text messages can proceed.

Despite headlines fretting of a "new era in OS X and iOS malware," Apple's security systems for iOS and OS X are working as intended to protect users from exposure to the ubiquitous malware affecting open platforms including Android and Windows. Here's the realistic, non-sensationalized facts about how safe Apple's users actually are and how users can remain protected from threats that arise.

A recently-discovered vulnerability in Apple's mobile operating system could allow attackers to trick users into replacing legitimate apps that have access to a variety of personal information -- such as banking apps -- with hacked versions that relay that information to malicious actors.

Apple on Sunday launched a new website that will allow users to deregister their cell phone number from its iMessage service, fixing an issue that would result in messages sent from iOS devices being "hijacked" if the recipient stopped using an iPhone.

The world's most popular mobile app has developed a new way to manage Android fragmentation, targeting users' hardware capabilities rather than devices' installed OS versions. Facebook's new efforts note that two thirds of the Android phones it sees "are equivalent to something released in 2011 or earlier."

iOS 8 offers powerful new tools to developers such as extensions, which allow third-party iPhone and iPad apps to be more flexible and interconnected than ever before. AppleInsider offers a look at some of the best iOS 8 extensions available to download on the App Store right now.

In keeping with the growing importance of Apple's iOS platform, Microsoft's new Word, Excel and PowerPoint apps for iPhone are now far superior than those Microsoft offers for its own Windows Phone 8 platform.

As Apple introduced minor updates to iWork, Beats Music and more, a number of other key updates hit the iOS App Store, including a temporary sale on the popular Swype keyboard from Nuance, as well as Touch ID security and iOS 8 extension support added to Google Drive.

Dedicated versions of Word, Excel and PowerPoint, comprising the Microsoft Office suite, are now available for iPhone, based on a unified codebase with their iPad counterparts, and also offering both iPhone and iPad users the ability to create and edit documents for free without an Office 365 subscription.

Coming less than one week following the discovery of an OS X vulnerability called "Rootpipe," computer security researchers have found a new form of malware dubbed "WireLurker," which infects well-protected iOS devices through OS X.

In its ranking of electronic messaging systems for safety and security, the Electronic Frontier Foundation said no mainstream products passed all of its criteria, but that Apple's iMessage and FaceTime "stood out as the best of the mass-market options."

Google announced on Wednesday that its popular Maps platform, including the free downloadable iOS application, will receive a major update in the near future, including a new look and new features, such as the ability to make restaurant reservations through OpenTable without leaving the app.

In a draft proposal published on Monday, the Unicode Consortium revealed a range of emoji skin tone modifiers it plans to roll out as an update to the current standard, finally bringing a dose of ethnic diversity to the ubiquitous pictographs.

Chipmakers Broadcom and Texas Instruments have started shipping out Bluetooth and Wi-Fi chips with installed Apple HomeKit firmware, meaning the first wave of HomeKit-enabled devices should hit store shelves soon.

Atheletes who rely on the popular RunKeeper app to track their workouts can now use a new "Stopwatch Mode" for easily entering indoor exercises. In addition, third-party keyboard SwiftKey was updated on Monday with support for four new languages, as well as a handful of improvements and bug fixes.

Bump, an app developer Google acquired last year, is bouncing back under the codename Copresence, an effort to deliver AirPlay-like file sharing that appears to be deeply integrated with Google+ Hangouts, sparking new privacy concerns.